This invention refers to a stamped wheel and, more particularly, to a wheel having a wheel disk that provides an attractive appearance, economic manufacturing cost, and convenient tire valve access.
Stamped wheels are known and used in automotive vehicles for low manufacturing cost, satisfactory performance and reparability. Generally, stamped wheels have the drawback of poor visual attractiveness, especially in comparison to single-piece cast wheels formed from light metal alloys (generally known as “aluminum wheels” or “light alloy wheels”).
Conventional stamped wheels typically include a wheel rim and a wheel disk that are welded together. The wheel rim and disk are typically stamped from carbon steel, which provides a low cost, desirable handling, and desirable mechanical properties.
The wheel disk typically includes a central region having screw-fastening holes for attachment to a wheel hub, an intermediate region having ventilation windows and spokes, and an external region that attaches to the wheel rim. Typically, a periphery of the external region that attaches to the wheel rim is perpendicular to a plane defined by the wheel disk (i.e., parallel to a rotational axis of the wheel).
The wheel rim includes two external regions (i.e., axial end portions) having flanges and an intermediate region. The intermediate region is typically referred to as a bed or ring-shaped shoulder. The intermediate region defines an internal surface that faces toward the wheel hub and an external surface that faces toward a tire on the wheel rim. The wheel rim may also include a hole for accommodating a tire valve that extends from the tire for gauging.
There are several conventional arrangements of the wheel disk, the wheel rim, and the hole/tire valve. The arrangements each provide a different appearance and have associated drawbacks.
For example, in one arrangement, the periphery of the wheel disk is attached with the inner surface of the external region of the wheel rim. In this arrangement, the hole for the tire valve extends through one of the inclined walls of the bed of the wheel rim. The tire valve protrudes from within the wheel through one of the ventilation windows of the wheel disk to provide access for gauging. Typically, the ventilation window includes a slot to receive the tire valve. This type of arrangement is visually attractive; however, the slot adds an additional step to the manufacturing of the wheel disk. The additional step may increase manufacturing expense, and the slot presents a wheel asymmetry that may cause wheel imbalance.
In a second arrangement, the periphery of the wheel disk is attached with the bed of the wheel rim. The hole for the tire valve extends through one of the inclined walls of the bed such that the tire valve protrudes from the wheel rim outside of the wheel disk. In such an arrangement, the tire valve protrudes at least partially into one of the ventilation windows, which makes tire gauging difficult because the sides of the ventilation window obstruct access. Although this arrangement avoids the manufacturing expense associated with a slotted ventilation window, the appearance is generally undesirable.
Accordingly, a stamped wheel is needed that provides an attractive appearance, relatively economic manufacturing, and convenient tire gauging.